


When I dream

by gingeroseBRen, Jesephine Rivarez (gingeroseBRen)



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Armitage Hux Deserved Better, Armitage Hux Needs A Hug, Beating, Child Abuse, Childhood, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Hurt Armitage Hux, Parent-Child Relationship, Past Abuse, Past Child Abuse, Post-Canon, Protection, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-11
Updated: 2021-01-31
Packaged: 2021-03-05 06:01:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 16,186
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25199698
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gingeroseBRen/pseuds/gingeroseBRen, https://archiveofourown.org/users/gingeroseBRen/pseuds/Jesephine%20Rivarez
Summary: He was mortally wounded, and she was too compassionate to just leave him. Armitage Hux has a dream and decides to share it with Rose. She wants to do everything to make this dream come true, because the hero of the resistance deserves it...
Relationships: Armitage Hux/Rose Tico
Comments: 14
Kudos: 47





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * A translation of [When I dream...](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/648277) by Jesephine Rivarez. 
  * A translation of [When I dream...](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/648280) by Jesephine Rivarez. 



> For you, my lovely Arcanis's boy, Armitage Hux ❤️We know about whom all of your dreams 😭 ❤️ 
> 
> Thank you very-very much, my beta [MgraHAnamcara](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MgraHAnamcara) ❤️ Without your I couldn't tell this story 🏵️❤️

Rose clutched her half of the pendant in her fist and the perception of what happened refused to sink in. Paige couldn't be dead. Anyone, but not her… The Resistance had many soldiers, so why, why of all people, her sister. Her selfless, brave sister. Her sis. Her Paige. When Rose was told what had happened, she wanted to go back to the past. It was a genuine heartfelt desire, filled with pain and despair. The bitter desire. 

She would have done anything to be there with Paige, to help her, to save her, to sacrifice her own life if necessary…

This anguished yearning didn’t leave her for a minute, and in moments of mortal danger it was especially strong. 

That was the last thing Rose wanted in her hastiness when her x-wing collided with Finn's. A bright red flash, and everything went Black. Before Rose could even guess what the landing would be like, or what the consequences of such a rash act might be, warm blood ran down her temple and her hands let go of the steering wheel.

Rose flinched at the sound of another salvo close at hand, and touched the blaster at her belt, gripping it convulsively. The weapon was useless against the attack of huge ships, but still a weapon. A false sense of security. A false hope of salvation. Her fear was still there, a quickening heartbeat reminding her of the danger ahead, but the feel of the blaster's coldness under her fingers calmed her a little. The touch was real, reassuring that she was still alive, that they weren't blown apart, that this wasn't a dream, that she was really there. And behind her was the dying general Hux, also very real.

She ran her fingers over the blaster, thinking again and again that for the most part, their fate was in the hands of those who were leading the attack, that she, Rose, little depends on it. Yet she didn't feel unnecessary. Of course, she couldn't fend off with a blaster for an external attack. She couldn't protect them from explosions, nor make the ship disappear from view of enemies and friends, but if one of the stormtroopers finds itself here, she will shoot him immediately, as she did this when First Order's doctors refused to help dying Hux. Hux who was their man, their General, damn it! Who was dedicated for so many years… 

Of course, she didn't feel as genuinely resentful as if it had been someone from the Resistance, Finn or Poe, but she didn't think it was fair. They can't just walk away from a man who had done an excellent job for years. Rose admired Hux as a professional, respected him for his intelligence, and hated him for it too. But even the fact that he did terrible things did not allow the same, or even worse, scoundrels to shoot him without a trial. Rose demanded justice. She needed him to be judged properly,taking into account the fact that thanks to him, the Resistance was now winning the most important battle!

Rose glanced at the door. The unknown dead man still lay in the doorway: one of the men had blocked her path and threatened to kill her if she took another step toward sick ward. Tico still shuddered at the memory of what had happened earlier, but she didn't regret it. She had to save the spy!

After clearing the way to the sick ward, shooting down the stormtroopers and an officer, she didn't waste any time moving the dead bastard aside. She had a more important task. She needed to try to save Armitage, and do everything possible so that he could survive the bombardment, so that later in the Resistance he would be given proper help. And she was assisted in this rescue. The med droids were more cooperative than the First Order's man, and their mechanisms were easily manipulated by her skilled hands…

Another explosion threw the ship sideways, distracting Rose out of her thoughts. The remaining drugs on the shelves fell to the floor, rolling away, and Rose herself was back at the head of the hospital bed, almost hitting the back of her head against the wall. On the side of her Hux softly groaned from the pain. He came to himself for a moment, coughing, and stared at her uncomprehending. She must have hit him when she fell. Tico got to her feet, shaking herself and intending to return to her observation post, but she stopped. His gaze went from surprised, it seemed to her even warm and grateful, to mocking and cold. As if at first he was glad to see her, and then…As if he thought she was going to tell someone that the general- traitor was awake.

Tico stared at him, unable to stop herself from feeling sorry for him. For him, this horrible man who had once condemned her to death who as done many terrible things. But she had no right to hate. She needed to put aside all of his past transgressions, because now he was their contact, their informant, someone she was personally responsible for, because she had been communicating with him all along. She was responsible for getting him safely to one of the Resistance's ships. She looked at Hux and tried to imagine what it would have been like if something in his life had happened differently. Maybe he wouldn't be like this…

His hand reached for the oxygen mask, pushing it away from his face. Rose unconsciously grabbed his hand, trying to pull the mask back on his face. Didn’t he realize that he's only making his condition worse? There was almost no chance of that. And the droid had notified her when she continued to adjust his program so that he would take up through the treatment. Despite the protests of the system, which assured her that the available funds were not enough to carry out the operation, Rose still believed that it was worth the effort. Of course, this was madness, a one-in-a-million possibility, because without the bacta capsule, he would not live to see the end of the bombardment, even if the operation had given him a few hours of life. But Rose still wasn't going to give up. Even if the general of the First Order was not the person she ever intended to help. 

" What are you doing?" she tried to pull the mask back on his face, but he stopped her with his other hand on her wrist. "Hey, it's okay, you can trust me".

"I don't have any more information for the Resistance" he said hoarsely through clenched teeth.

"I don't need it." Rose perched on the hospital bed, still holding his hand. Under her hot fingers was his cold palm, and it seemed to her a disturbing sign. " I need to get you back alive…" 

" to die in prison?" he said mockingly, and coughing. His grin turned to a grimace of pain. Hux reached out his hand to the wound in his chest, gently touching the bandages. There, under that crooked bandage, was what would be his undoing. It wasn't a shot on the battlefield, not the wrath of Snoke or Ren, nor die of old age, after all. It was a shot of Pryde’s blaster. And because of whom? Because of the stupid Resistance! 

"Put the damn mask back on!" she looked at him sternly, but he only closed his eyes wearily and turned away.

" It's no use..." 

"Nothing is useless, as long as there is someone to fight for it!" Rose squeezed his hand. "I'm…

"Take your hand away! I'm not going to survive to drop dead on a Resistance base " he said calmly, still not turning to her. 

Tico glanced at the warning that flashed on the which screen, but she had taken her hand away. How difficult it was to save someone when they fiercely refused to help.  
Rose got up from the hospital bed, and it was a mistake on her part. The ship rocked again, so that Tico was thrown sideways against one of the cabinets. Such a painful fall. Something fell from the shelves again…


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am very happy to see your feedback! Thank you very much to everyone who comments on my work. I love you, my reader.  
> I will be happy to see even a few words of response. This is very important to me. 
> 
> P.S. Thank you very-very much, my beta [MgraHAnamcara](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MgraHAnamcara)

"Hey!" Tico heard his voice and several other explosions close by.

Rose opened her eyes a little, feeling the pain spreading over her shoulder.

"I have a feeling that you specifically wished that we didn't survive this bombardment," Tico whispered angrily, getting to her feet. He only snorted in response. Rose sat down on the hospital bed again, holding on to the side so that she wouldn't be thrown away again next time.

Hux just looked at her skeptically, not saying a word.

His silence allowed her to think back to Paige, thinking incautiously that if one of the shells had hit them, she would have been with her sister. They would be together again, two halves of the same whole.

Rose wanted to go back many times to save her sister. If only time travel was possible, Rose would have saved Paige. That would have been wonderful…

Now the desire to go back to the past was even stronger: from the realization that you can't change everything, that saving someone else's life is not always in your hands, Rose wanted to go back to that day, to those minutes, because maybe if Paige hadn't sacrificed her life, everything would have turned out...differently?

Rose looked at Hux again, at this cruel, terrible man who had turned out to be the hero, who had made the Resistance aware of the Sith warships. Due to his information the Resistance was now moving in the right direction.

Another salvo apparently seemed to hit one of the ship's power units, because the lights in the sick bay went out for a moment. Rose stared in horror at the screens of the medical devices which had begun to reboot one by one. The entire system was rebooting.

Rose turned to Armitage, taking his arm again.

“Don't you dare pass out, do you hear me?" she had snatched the oxygen mask from him, pulling it over his face, and begun hastily switching the buttons on the oxygen concentrator.

Hux whispered something unintelligible to her, closing his eyes.

***

At last, the power supply had recovered, and previous power of the appliances had been restored, not without using backup power, Rose guessed correctly. However how long would these reserves last?

Tiсo had leaned back against the wall, her head thrown back wearily. She had lost track of time, because every minute lasted a tediously long time, and the bombardment of the spacecraft still continued. Now Rose thought that they really wouldn't get out of here alive. They will be destroyed anyway.

Hux regained consciousness: Rose heard him cough. Tico didn't want to relapse into that awful silence, so she clung to the opportunity to talk and distract herself from the roar of the explosions. They were starting to drive her crazy.

“Tell me, Hux, have you ever dreamed of anything?" she was sure that the question would remain unanswered, but she voiced it anyway. She was scared, and she wanted to turn her attention to Hux's voice. 

Although the fact that Armitage Hux was the last person she would speak to before she died was discouraging, she did ask.  
Armitage looked astonished at her, pushing the mask away again.

“That doesn't sound like a... ordinary question."

“It’s a normal question. Everyone dreams of something,” she lowered her eyes, smiling at the fact that he'd answered something instead of ignoring her. Maybe she was too hasty to think about him as a hopeless conversationalist.

Hux remained in silence again, and Rose wondered whether he was pondering the answer, or trying to find out what the catch is behind the words of _"the resistance’s girl"_. Rose had already thought that he had fainted anew. She opened her eyes and turned to look at him. Hux still seemed deathly pale, but alive, and watched her. 

“About the order in the galaxy.” 

“ - and about how to become a Supreme Leader” Rose finished his sentence mockingly, more to cheered him up. However Armitage just put the oxygen mask on his face to this remark. His glance told Tico that her words were taken as an insult. “I didn’t mean your purpose in life, only your desire, your dream.” Rose didn't want to break off the conversation, though she wasn't sure what she really expected to hear from a man like Hux. Yet, somehow it seemed to her that it should be something more down-to-earth, naive, not such a jagged answer, etched into every cell of the cruel general's mind. “Sincere and innocent. Maybe something well-forgotten, something from a time before you were like this…” 

“I'm not gonna talk about it” his voice was weak and unfriendly. Rose couldn't even object. If he cut her off, did he have something to hide? So there was something kind, warm, and well-hidden behind this impenetrable shell in the soul of such an evil, harsh man? 

“Well, I'll tell you first,” she carefully removed the locket from under her uniform jacket. Hux had put the mask back on and turned his head slightly to see what she was looking at. “I would like to save my sister. She died a hero's death, but I always thought the world could have done without that sacrifice”. 

The general grinned. Rose saw it in his eyes. 

“I’m…” 

"This is war,” he removed the mask from his face, immediately coughing “and it is not divided into necessary and unnecessary victims. The main thing is the result.” 

How many times does she need to hear this before she realized that talking to the enemy will bring her nothing but pain? How many times will the result be more important than millions of lives, just because someone needed this war?! 

Rose's ears rang from her excitement. Nevertheless, what did she expect to hear from Hux? Words of sympathy? The regrets? The apologies? He was still her enemy, despite the fact that she continued to fight for his life and tried to save him, ignoring the danger that threatened to kill her. 

Tico wanted to say what she thought about the futile war, the results, the victims, but Hux had coughed again, and this time the cough was stronger than the previous one. Armitage leaned forward, blinking at the pain and shuddering with each new attack. Rose helped him sit up, and surprisingly, he didn't refuse her help. Tico stifled her resentment by returning to the issues at hand, directly to the task at hand. She must double-check every device, every IV, to make sure they still had time. 

Armitage finally straightened up, holding on with his free hand to the seams hidden behind the bandages. There was blood on his lips. 

Rose sat down on the hospital bed, turning away. She didn't want to let the thought of a bad outcome get pervasive, but the sight of blood couldn't mean anything good. Blood meant death. Hux tried to lean over to cough and to get into a recumbent position, and Tico helped him again. If she hadn't asked questions, he wouldn't have gotten any worse. However his words hurt her, and she could not remain silent. 

"If you had lost someone dear in the war, you would understand me." 

She said it almost in a whisper, hoping he wouldn't hear her quiet reproach over the explosions. They both fell silent. Hux had turned to her and stared at her for a while without looking away. It was his weariness against her determination. He heard everything. 

Rose waited for him to tell her that it was stupid to be so emotional, that it's stupid to cling to people, to have feelings, or what ever else could this cold, calculating man have said. 

"I understand" he had said calmly and pulled on his oxygen mask, taking a careful breath, however the rush of air still knocked another cough out of him. Rose felt her heart tighten. From the way his words came out she was afraid. He spoke as if he were about to die. She was afraid. Worse than the roaring explosions, worse than when he was unconscious. Rose squeezed his hand gently, hoping he wouldn't push it away. And he didn't. Whether he didn't want to or didn't have the energy, Rose didn't know. 

"And yet, I would like to hear the answer to my first question," Tico decided that she wanted to hear it, to know that even this terrible general had something in his heart, some warmth that made him human. 

Hux looked at her fingers on his arm, but didn't say anything about it. It was hard to guess what he was thinking. 

"Everyone has a dream, Hux," Rose persisted, flinching at the next salvo. It sounded very close, hitting the spaceship. The heart-tracking device indicated that the pulse had accelerated, while the blood pressure was still dangerously low. The general seemed to look right through Tico. 

Rose could feel the tears gathering in her eyes: from desperation, from the wasted effort, from the fact that she felt the bombardment would not end until their ship was destroyed, from the fact that the one she was going to fight for was dying… 

She tried to distract herself by gently taking his hand in hers. She wanted to scream at him to stop looking at her like that. He mustn’t die, not now… 

His hand had trembled and he pushed back the mask. 

"Maybe just a dream," he said softly, and Rose tried to smile at his sudden compliance, "see my mom…" 

This was too personal a dream, probably the most cherished secret of a general of the First Order. Rose's heart warmed to the fact that he had finally decided to tell her. Tico looked into his tired eyes, which he closed and opened more slowly than before, without looking away, but it seemed that he no longer saw her. 

"You will survive, and we will find her. You will definitely see her! I will do anything to help you contact her, I will…" the thought of her parents was as painful as the thought of Paige, but Rose pushed her grief aside. She should think of good things, cling to hope, and give it to others. 

"She's dead. Long ago, during the siege…" Tico felt tears trickle down her cheeks. She's dead, as their hope for survival. Hux closed his eyes, pulling the mask down over his face. 

"I am very sorry…" 

The explosion had came from her left, and Rose felt a hard blow on the back of her head. The ringing in her ears merged with the now-monotonous beep of the life-support device, and the bright flash of light turned to Darkness… 


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to my wonderful beta, [MgraHAnamcara](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MgraHAnamcara) for her really hard work correcting my text.

Rose felt pain all over her body. The pain was especially intense in the back of her head, as if someone had stunned her from behind. Tico had tried to open her eyes, but they closed again. The feeling was the same as when her x-wing crashed: absolutely shattered, with no strength at all. Rose had wanted to push away the unpleasant memories mixed with feelings, and hastily decided that she had just hit something when she fell. Now she needed to get up, open her eyes, and move on. She had to survive to live. 

The last thing she remembered was the explosion and the cold fingers of Hux in her palms.  
He might have been able to survive after his injury, but he didn't exactly outlive the explosion. Even if Rose was trying to be optimistic, even if she wanted to believe that she was wrong, she could hear the terrible sound of the cardiac monitor, so there was no doubt about it. Armitage was dead.

Rose didn't know if she felt bitter about the loss or not, nevertheless she was sorry it had ended like this. He died without redemption, died remembered as a cold-blooded killer, the creator of Starkiller, not as a Resistance hero — the spy, Armitage Hux.  
She wanted to fight for him and fought to the end, however circumstances had played against her.   
Of course, maybe it was just as well, because Rose was no longer so sure that the Resistance would have welcomed the spy with open arms. Not the spy who had recently been one of the most dangerous people in the galaxy, because no one else believed that he deserved to be saved. However Rose believed it.  
Rose was sure that he deserved it, especially now when she knew that even a man like Hux had a dream, a cherished dream that was straight from childhood, perhaps a happier time.   
He wanted to see his mother. Well, now they probably are together in a good place... 

Rose felt the cold surrounding her as if she were in a freezer. The cold was everywhere, it had creeped under her clothes and spread all over her body.   
Tico felt something unpleasant and metallic had touched her cheek. She shuddered and opened her eyes.

"Hey, look at her!" the male voice was not Hux's. Tico had shifted her unfocused gaze from one vague shape to another, then to a third, then tried to blink away the haze that obscured her vision, blurring her eyes. 

None of the people around her looked familiar. None of them was Armitage or soldiers of the Resistance. Hope seemed meaningless and it was fading right before her eyes.

“Looks like she’s done gone got her head banged up by a corner, “ someone nearby laughed repulsively.

Rose had frowned and glared at the speaker. There is cold and gray, nothing like a clean sickbay. Where was she? She had survived, however where had Hux gone, at least his body. Maybe she'll be able to see him. Unless the body of one of the Galaxy's most hated men was given to a resistant, who was hungry for justice...

A volley of shots was heard in the sky, some distance from the fence. Is this a bombardment, again?

"Where I am?" Tico tried to make her voice firm.

"Oh, look, she can talk!" she heard the guffaw nearby. "This is Arkanis, baby. I'm surprised you got that out of your head".  
Rose thought she stopped breathing. She stared at the person who had told her the news and couldn't decide whether to believe him or not. Probably not worth it.  
She couldn't have been there. This was definitely not Arkanis, for all she knew there was no fighting on Arkanis at the moment, and furthermore if a wrecked ship had brought her here, she would probably have seen it somewhere nearby. Maybe she's at the new Resistance's base? Nevertheless why isn't she in the medical facility? Why were they shooting? Who fired? Beyond the fence, she saw people running down the street.

It was hard as hell to think.

"There is very funny, smartass" Tico tried to get up, holding on to the fence next to her. It was hard, but she got to her feet. She needed to find Poe or Finn… and figure out where Hux had gone. Should she, at least, try to bring him back to life, at least for what he did for the Resistance… 

"Hmm, you probably haven't sobered up yet," the man again poked her in the face with the point of the knife. Rose resisted the urge to flinch again. All this time, cold metal against her cheek was the blade? "Maybe we should cut her down right here? Or should I take her to the master's house? What if she's a spy?

"Anything can happen" a second voice replied. "Was she a kitchen maid?". 

"She is a cleaner rather" the first one guffawed "If she was prettier, I'd have fun with her... Of course, if someone will wash her…

"What?!" Rose waved away the man who had grabbed her arm. For which she received a threatening stab in the shoulder with a knife. 

"Don't kick folks! You're trespassing on private property, and you can't just get away with it, tramp". 

Men roughly grabbed her both sides of the shoulders, and Rose didn't dare to repeat her attempt to break free. Tico was sure that if she did this, she would be injured. They said they'd stab her. Her life had no value to them, she wasn't on a First Order's ship where they could use her as a prisoner of war and extract her knowledge.

"I can walk on my own. You think I'll run away?" she glared at the man who had turned to her. He laughed as a response. 

"We don't want you to cause any problems".

Rose paused as the blade of the knife came back to her neck. She didn't want to risk her life, not after such a miraculous survival.

She didn't like this situation more than ever. Especially the fact that she was about to be treated as a trespasser, even though she wasn't. She had actually been in a space disaster, however here she was credited with some kind of invasion of the territory.

***

Tico went up the steps, on the way, stumbling several times from fatigue. It was difficult to keep up with the rapid pace of the strangers leading her. When they finally entered a hall, Rose was ready to fall to the floor. 

Her head was hurting harder, and the pain in her body was still there. Tico looked around, noticing that the house looked unusual.  
It all seemed like a nightmare. And Rose did not want to stay here. She wanted to wake up!

A poke in the back made Tico continue walking. Rose looked blankly at the people accompanying her, and then, at a nod from one of them, noticed a dark-haired woman sitting in a chair.

"We were conducting an inspection of the territory and had found this girl" the woman had turned at the voice, and Rose could have sworn she'd never met a more unpleasant person. The stranger's eyes were narrowed dangerously, and the very look of her said that Tico should expect nothing good from this woman. 

"First time I've seen her" she motioned for Rose to be brought closer. Tico took a few hesitant steps, feeling stranger's dislike growing stronger. Maybe she should at least try to say something in her own justification, try to defend herself? Rose started to open her mouth, but the stranger cut her off.

"Not from here" the woman looked Tico up and down with disdain. "However, I don't have time to deal with her now. Lock her in the pantry so she doesn't steal anything, and my husband will decide what to do with her. If he doesn't find something for her to do and doesn't shoot her, I'll send her to cook instead of that whore".

Rose glared at the woman, but she wasn't going to continue the conversation, and just had turned away. When Tico had tried to speak, they put a knife to her face again, reminding her that she was nobody here. The prospect of sitting in a closet did not appeal to her, but it was quite convenient. Further away from the observers, alone with her thoughts, with the opportunity to think well about the next plan of action, and to come to her senses. In the state she was in now, it was impossible to fight at all. It was worth a try, though, as she had been with Finn on the ship of FO. However there was no one there now, no one to support her impulse, no one to help her.

Rose continued to wonder where she might be and who all these people were. Why isn't the Resistance still looking for her? How could she have gotten to a planet without a ship and where had Hux gone? If she'd survived, maybe there was some hope that he had too?… Tico imagined what it would be like if he were here, nearby. Would she have been more comfortable with his presence, and what would he have done if he had been with her, in the state in which she had last seen him… Perhaps, he must have come up with something, he's a good enough strategist, and he has a sharp mind and was exceptionally cunning. Maybe with him she would have been able to run away faster. However would he cooperate?...

Again the stairs, the corridor, and Rose tried to watch her step so as not to fall. Thoughts about running also visited her without interruptions, nevertheless she was in no hurry to implement them. She didn't have the strength or the ability to do that, she just wanted to get somewhere, lie down, rest, and then think about how to get out of there.

From here, it's from the cubbyhole they just pushed her into. Rose had tripped over something behind her and fell to the floor, cursing loudly to a ghoulish roar of laughter. There was a soft sob from the side. There was a rustle, and Tico turned toward the source of the sound, however it was hard to see who her unwitting cellmate was in the gloom.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you very-very much, my beta [MgraHAnamcara](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MgraHAnamcara)
> 
> My dear readers, thank you for your feedback. I read and reread all of them. It's very important to me...

The sound of the bolt closing interrupted her exclamation, and the retreating footsteps almost distracted her attention from the fact that someone else was clearly in the room too. Rose looked away from the door and suppressed the urge to scream. What was the use of futile attempts to call for help? She was in someone else's residence, and the owners had made it clear that they were not happy to see her. 

Her eyes gradually got used to the darkness, in an effort to see that there was someone alive. A human or an animal, it didn't matter what. 

"Hey, who's there?" she cautiously held out her hand, inadvertently touching something that looked like a bag. It was a hunched human figure. This someone immediately recoiled from her touch.

"It's me." A small frightened child's voice rang out. "Don't hurt me!" 

Rose took her hand away from him, holding it up in a reassuring gesture to show that it wouldn't do anything to hurt him. There was another rustle as someone tried to pull back further.

"Sorry." Tico whispered and tried to get to her feet. However it seems that the endless stairs had taken away her last strength: her body ached with fatigue and she really wanted to rest. She pushed herself up on weak legs then sank to the floor again. Her attempts, which were unsuccessful, convinced her that there was no need to hurry. The main thing was that she wasn't alone, and whoever the child was, they could get out together. Maybe later…

She felt the floor with her hand, trying to find out how much space there was in this closet. On the wooden floor, she found a bag with solid contents and what seemed to be shards of broken glass mixed with rotten trash. It was not opportune to lie down temporarily as there was not enough space, and the idea of resting in a sitting position was the only way to get some rest.

"Who are you?" The boy's voice was calmer, but the whiny notes were still clear. Rose pulled herself out of her thoughts and tried again to see the speaker's face in the darkness, in vain.

"Rose." She wanted to hold out her hand in greeting, but didn't dare. He was afraid her. This behavior was understandable to her. Tico paused, wondering what she should say to this terrified child so that he would stop being afraid and become her friend. What words could a stranger use to persuade the distrustful creature that she was no danger to him? 

"I'm Rose Tico. I'm from the Resistance." 

Her words have made an impression on him, because the boy immediately became quiet.

"I am not going to stay here for a long time, and I hope you can help me?" it was much easier to communicate with a person when you could see their face so Rose wasn’t quite sure at all what to do. To add to the confusion, fatigue, a headache, and a feeling of an irresistible desire to sleep were added. For a moment, this desire seemed a threat even to her… She held on to this thought.

"You can't get out until they open the door on the other side." The boy spoke carefully, deliberately, as if he was afraid to give away all his thoughts at once, as if he was testing whether he could trust Rose, or whether she was just another person who shouldn't be trusted. "I've tried it many times. The door is too heavy." The boy's voice sounded very close. Rose moved to one side, for fear of accidentally touching the child while trying to determine by touch where the floor was less likely to have shards. 

She examined the scattered glass with her fingers and determined there weren’t any near the door so she crawled back there, and leaned her back against it.

"So you have to come up with another way. Use your brain." She leaned the back of her head against the door, closing her eyes. She couldn't concentrate even when the darkness was completely impenetrable. How could she convince someone, inspire someone, when her own brain refused to generate brilliant ideas, increasingly convincing her that the best option in her situation would only be to sleep? Didn't she throw her fists at the door and hit it?! Rose felt her fatigue increase, and the rustling around her grew fainter. It was as if a void was forming all around. Tico opened her eyes with difficulty, remembering again the warning that had come to her by accident. She can't fall asleep! Maybe her main objective consisted in this?... 

"You think I'm stupid?" 

His voice had reassured her somewhat with his presence which brought her back from this state but the meaning of his words, which came a little later, discouraged her. 

"The suggestion ‘use your brain’ implies a different meaning." Rose put her hand to her forehead, hoping to ease the headache with a cold touch. "I wanted to only say that it's no wonder you couldn't open it just by pushing, because you…" 

"Worthless." 

Rose was uneasy at the tone in which this was said. "You think so, too?"

"What? No, I didn't say that!" It was hard to talk, and even harder — to convince. In her current state, she didn't have the strength to persuade, she just wanted everything to work out by itself, without any extra effort. However, maybe she was asking for too much? Because the problems were not solved at the click of a finger. "If someone tells you such nonsense, don't listen him. No one is useless, especially…" 

"My father says I'm good for nothing." Rose frowned at this other remark, which this time cut her off at the most inopportune moment. The boy's voice was very close, as if the boy had come nearer to her. "He told me that I can never be a soldier." 

This kind of talk about worthlessness and uselessness was familiar to her. It was familiar to her so much so that she immediately interrupted the boy, not allowing him to continue the senseless stream of self-flagellation. What kind of scumbag could instill low self-worth to someone like this little child? She herself faced a similar problem when her hands fell limp from the realization that she did not save her family, her planet from destruction… However a child ? He would like to play on the street with other children, enjoy childhood, be happy and loved, not know these adult problems. This little boy, what he can do to prove something to his father?

"Fact that you won't be a soldier doesn't mean that you can not find another destination for yourself. Something, that you'll be good enough at. Besides, what your father says doesn't matter, because it doesn't depend on him! He has no right to dispose of your life! You can achieve what you want if you try hard! " She made a second attempt to touch him. Instinctively, she reached out to put her hand on his shoulder in an attempt to comfort him, to make contact. She wanted to understand this child and show him that he could trust her. Usually, when you hug children, pat them on the head or shoulder, they calm down, feel safe, feel better. However, Rose did not take into account the fact that children who are not accustomed to displays of affection do not accept such attention easily. Her fingers gently touched his back, but he immediately pushed her hand away.

"He told me that I'm insignificant and useless, and he should have killed me as soon as I was born…" 

"Listen to me!" Rose cut him off abruptly, peered closer, caught a vague outline in the darkness. A little light filtered through the crack in the door, just enough to see the top of the child's head bowed to his knees. The boy held his knees to his chest, hiding his face. "Remember you are not insignificant! Nobody is insignificant. I'm sure your mother would have told you the same thing. So instead of whimpering, you better help me figure out how to get out of here." 

"She never spoke to me." The boy shook his head, still not showing Rose his face. "My father told me that meeting her will make me even weaker". 

"Meeting a loving person…" can create additional weakness. Attachment, love, bring weakness. Rose paused, trying to remember where she'd heard something like this before. Spoken in the boy's voice, these words were terrible. It was as if someone had tried to program a child from an early age, to turn it into a robot. To create the perfect mechanism. To subdue. To suggest. 

"A loving person can give you hope, he can be both a weakness and a strength. If you have someone to fight for, you feel that you are not useless. Hey!" She put her palm on his shoulder, squeezing her fingers to show that this time she wasn't going to back down. "Listen. You can be who you want to be. And you will! I believe in you, I say you can! You will prove to your father that he was wrong!” The boy turned his head slightly in her direction, and Rose felt her heart pricked by hundreds of needles. His cheek was purple, and it was easy to guess that the dark streaks were blood. Tico gasped in anger, crawling closer to the boy. "He will pay, is that clear?! For this and for taking away your opportunity to see…" 

_"see your mother"_

**"see my mom…"**

Rose recoiled from the boy: the first thought was shocking, unexpected, and frightening at the same time. Tico involuntarily touched the amulet that hung on her chest.

 _"No, no, it's only coincidence."_

**"It's him, Armitage Hux."**

_"Only coincidence, just a boy."_

**"The boy who never saw his mom."**

**"Armitage Hux, the creator of Starkiller, taking revenge on the entire Galaxy for underestimating him.”**

_" Only poor son of his cruel father."_

**"Arkanis and the war with the Republic. The Republic, that took his mother away from him…"**

The child raised his head and looked at her with tear-stained eyes. His thin, battered and bloody face fell: the hope that had appeared was about to be extinguished again. Rose checked herself, and thought to herself that the boy hadn't really noticed her reaction, and he'd just thanked her for taking her hand away. "Did I do something wrong?" He put his hand on the floor, ready to move as far away from Rose as possible. He pulled his head into his shoulders, apparently prepared for a blow, and still kept his eyes fixed on her. "Will you hurt me now, too? For what?" 

Rose looked at him, and her mind desperately drew in front of her, the adult Armitage, his vengeful expression. The adult Armitage, bloodless general of the First Order, was lit by a scarlet light. There, on a Starkiller. If fate had decided to play a trick on her, and this was Armitage. If this little downtrodden child was one of the Galaxy's scariest people, Tico will do anything to change that. Rose raised both palms facing forward in front of her. She was the one who told him that he could do whatever he wanted, and she was the one who made him believe that killing was the solution to everything. She should have thought carefully before saying anything to him. However, what's done is done.

"All's well" her voice was calm and even. The boy didn't answer, just waiting for any action on her part. Waiting a blow, a slap, a kick, a slap on the back of the head, anything but not a caress. "Sorry, I'm… You remind me of someone, I used to know. I didn't want to scare you or hit you." Rose held out one of her open hands to him, as if he was a suspicious animal that might pounce if it sensed danger. "I just wanted to say that you have to be strong for your mom, you have to save her. I will help." 

Rose watched as he slowly straightened up, looked at her palms, and carefully held out his hand.

"I know you're going to hit me anyway, but… no one has ever done anything like you before." He raised an open hand, raised the other, mimicking Rose's gesture."What is it?" 

Tico looked at him in surprise.

"This ?" 

"Your hands. You hold them like that, why?" Was it just her imagination, or was there laughter in his voice?

"I'm showing you that I'm not going to hit you." Carefully, she brought her palm closer to his, touching it. "See? It's not that fearfully." 

He stared at their hands for a few moments, then moved his hand slightly to the left and nodded, repeating the maneuver with his other hand. The boy studied Rose for a long time, then suddenly spoke again.

"My name is _Armiteje_." he stopped, shook his head, and took his hands away. "No.." 

"Armitage. Armitage Hux…" Rose said softly, lowering her palms. Who would have thought that this intimidated little beast, which is so hard to contact, the same General Hux, who won the authority of numerous stormtroopers and officers?

"You know everything? My father sent you!? " The light haze of trust was lifted again. Rose shook her head. It was in hindsight. She should have kept quiet. However, she needed to confirm her terrible guess, needed to make sure it was him. What strange significance was her presence in this place, why was she there, for what purpose…? Rose leaned her temple against the door.

"I'm from Hayes Minor. And I have no idea how I ended up there. And if you don't help me, we'll stay in this cellar until those people come, or worse!" The headache increased, and Tico found herself wanting to rest again. She's clearly doing something wrong.

"I've never seen you before. Why can I trust you?" the boy crept cautiously closer, peering into her face. Rose tilted her head to the side to be better seen by Hux. 

"Because no one else will ever help you!" The phrase sounded somewhat angry and irritable, but Rose was too tired to think about it. She just wanted to...fall asleep and wake up. So that this strange dream with this poor child would let her go.

Armitage looked at her expectantly again, taking the irritated tone of her voice as a threat. He waited for the blow that would follow discontent. However, Tico closed her eyes and turned away. 

The boy raised one palm, thought for a long time before doing anything, and finally laid it gently on her shoulder.

"Rose. It's like a flower?" 

Tico opened her eyes in not believing her ears or her senses.

"Yes." 

"It's interesting." he pulled back, removing his palms "Do it again." He raised both hands, in the initial gesture Rose had shown him. "Please". 

The request discouraged her, but she didn't ask for what purpose he needed this. She held her hands out in front of her. The boy gently touched her palms, then leaned down, placing his bruised cheek against her cold fingers. Rose flinched, absolutely not expecting such an action. 

He was just like a little animal that wanted to be petted. Tico carefully placed her other hand on his head.

"We're going to get out of here and find her now. We'll find your mom, I promise" she heard him sob softly, and the tears ran down his cheek, brushing her hand "Hey." Rose turned her body toward him, cupping his face in her hands. He shut his eyes and wept noiselessly. "Can I give you a hug? I don't want you to cry, hey -" 

He opened his eyes, looking at her directly. Rose couldn't understand why he began to cry even harder. Didn't he know what it was…

" _Hugs!_ Everyone's messing up my last name! What’s with that?!" 

Tico wanted to slap herself for not thinking straight. Of course, that's what Poe called him.

"The hugs this is a manifestation of emotion. This is when a person wants to show that he trusts you." 

Armitage thought about it, cocked his head in disbelief, and nodded uncertainly.

"If it doesn't hurt." The way he said it made her heart ache. How many beatings had he endured that he was afraid of any touch? How many times had his childish, boyish face been covered in cuts, scratches, and blood? Tico gently released his face and hugged him lightly. He tensed at first, and she felt his tension and was afraid to close her hands. However, after a while, his arms lightly wrapped around her. He cried into her shoulder as she stroked his back, soothing him. Soft, careful movements, afraid to frighten him.

"There's nothing offensive about it, see? They just take advantage of the fact that it annoys you. If you stop thinking it's a mimicry, ignore them, they'll stop."

"Really?" Armitage drew back, looking at her with a mixture of surprise and ghostly joy.

"Yes. And if you don't cry any more, General, and stop thinking about your own futility, I suggest we start preparing for our escape from this prison".


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to my beta "https://archiveofourown.org/users/MgraHAnamcara" rel="nofollow">MgraHAnamcara for her help! without her, we would be reading a terrible translation of the author and google translator XD
> 
> Thank you a lot, my readers, we're nearing the finish line) There are only two chapters left. Please stay with me a little longer.
> 
> Thank you about your feedback! I love read and reread it for find an inspirations))

Maybe Rose was overestimating her strength when she recited inspirational speeches. Just as she managed to get the boy to managed to pick up the boy’s spirit, her own confidence evaporated.  
How could they escape from a room that is bolted? How was she supposed to get over the headache and collect her thoughts so that she could finally come up with a good plan? Tico wasn't as strong as the men who had grabbed her, easily lifting and lowering the bolt, so how was she going to do that when she was on the other side of the door? She was crazy! The adult Hux would have laughed at her excessive optimism, ridiculed her misplaced enthusiasm long ago! However he wasn't there. Instead of the self-confident FO's general, there was an ordinary child sitting next to her, a boy who expected some unimaginable feat from her, and for whom she was now a real hero. She could feel the awe with which he was looking at her, waiting for a miracle. Rose could not show that she had doubted the truth of her words, could not show that the realization of their situation had eventually come, and her hands dropped. Tico was only entitled to one more attempt to come up with a different way out of the confined space. It was very hard. It was really hard, because her head was throbbing and her temples were aching.

 _‘Well, let's say this is a utility room, a closet with old junk, which is located very high. Maybe it is an attic? A small part of it, separated from the main part?’_ Rose scratched the back of her head thoughtfully and was working out the logical chain of thoughts in her mind.

She had got to her feet and, without straightening up to her full height, went deeper into the garret. There, where the ceiling was higher, judging by the fact that there fitted were roof beams.

Gradually, her eyes became more accustomed to the darkness, her body stopped aching from the hard fall, and the headache faded into the background and became bearable, from which Tiсo concluded that she was going in the right direction. Her condition gave her clues. Or maybe it was just her imagination, nothing more… The boy who had stood up, followed her up, grabbed her by the jacket and kept up with her. Rose pushed aside several boxes that were stacked on top of each other and felt around the wall. There was wet mold and cobwebs that clung insistently to Rose’s fingers. Tico grimaced, twitching her hand to get rid of the unpleasant sticky mesh, wiped her hand on her pant leg, and continued her research.  
Getting closer to better access the wall was hindered by large bags and clinking bottles. Tico moved everything she could to the opposite wall. To the one with the deadbolt. Rearranging the furniture was going to be a bit of a lifesaver, in case someone came earlier. Blocked by shelves and other debris, the exit was going to help buy time. And it was very important in their situation. 

Rose put everything she could move firmly against the old door and leaned against the far wall, the part where the mold was most obvious: it seemed to grow not from one surface, but between two surfaces, in a gap. 

As between loosely joined slabs, pieces of wood or metal blocks!

“I think I found something. Hey Armitage, can you find out if there's a notch at the bottom? A long gap, like between a door and a wall” Rose had raised her hand, probing the opening above her head from one corner to the other. 

“I can!”

She heard a soft, muffled cry, and the boy started, apparently caught in the web as well.

“There is!” the boy said happily despite his fright and clinged to the rebel's jacket again, as if he was afraid of losing her.

Rose had pushed the boxes further away: glass was crunching under her feet, and dust blew into her face. She ran her palm softly over the doorway, feeling the light incoming air.

She had continued moving her hand along the entire surface next to the notch, slightly searching with her fingers and felt the sharp edges of something metal. Even lower was a hollowed opening. 

“The door.” Rose whispered softly, somewhat encouragingly. The nightmare was getting a happy outcome. She pushed the door away from her, but it didn't budge, as was expected. Tico tried to grab the piece of doorknob, but it was broken and useless. It didn't turn in any direction, either from rust or from lack of effort due to the inability to grasp the broken handle with the entire palm of her hand. 

“Why do we need a door that can't be opened?" Armitage said in frustration, tugging at Rose's sleeve. It seemed to her that the whining note was back in his voice.

“So cheer up! We are going to get out of here!”Tico let down her hair, releasing the wire. “If I promised, then so be it. And if you cry again, I’m going to demote you!”

The boy had sobbed softly and calmed down, squeezing the hem of her jacket harder. The innocent threat was a rather harsh warning, but Tico didn't have time to choose the right words. She had dropped to her knees, blinking with a pain due to the jagged shards that bit into her legs, leaned against the door and carefully pushed the wire through. The work would be long and painstaking, but there was very little time for it. If they got caught red-handed, they were going to be in trouble. Usually the penalty for runaways was administered in twice the volume. Especially if it was not forbidden to mutilate prisoners.

Rose remembered how had been taught how to pick locks by her sister, Paige. 

It was so long ago, as if an eternity had passed since they were teenagers and climbed various warehouses in search of interesting apparatus. Then it had never occurred to Rose that one day her life would depend on this skill, that it would prove to be useful, however, Paige hadn’t listened to Rose's protests, so despite her reservations, she had been shown and taught everything Paige knew.

_‘Oh, how right Paige was. Paige, sis, I couldn't save you… However you were always right, always found words of support, your hugs were the warmest and most soothing. They were homely’._

Rose leaned her forehead against the door. Her movement met the resistance of the locking mechanism: it was impossible to push the wire further between the cogs. On the one hand, the wire seemed too fragile, on the other, the gap between the cogs did not match the diameter of the wire. If she could have seen the damn keyhole, she would have done it faster.

“Kriff…” Rose wanted to hit the door with her fist, smash all those vile clinking bottles rolling on the floor because of the movement of the boxes, smash it all, preferably on the head of the sadistic owner of this house. However, all she could do now was continue her feeble attempts to pick the lock. She sniffed softly, ready to send her crazy ideas to hell: in the past, she and Paige had had a whole set of instruments, but now, what did they have? Just a wire! Tears gathered at the corners of her eyes and Rose angrily wiped them away. 

"What happened?" She felt a gentle touch on her shoulder. If only that little boy was an adult Armitage she knew, they would be able to escape from there, they would be able to open the lock, perhaps they might not have even found themselves in this storeroom. Hux would have had a spare blaster, a knife, after all, some kind of weapon… However, maybe it was a good thing that adult Hux wasn't there? It was easier to save that boy who needed support and didn't resist her help. In addition, he was a more humane and sweet companion than his adult version.

_‘How amazing it was that I’m here…Why in this place, at this time? Hux had said that his mother had died during the siege on Arcanis a long time ago, and if I had correctly understood, here was a war going on right now. But what was the connection? Or were there even any?’_

“Don't stop, please. I thought I heard someone coming.” The boy's voice had become frightened and low, so Rose froze and listened. 

She once again took out the wire, slightly changed the configuration of the tip and stuck it again. She pushed a little harder, leaning her shoulder against the door. Footsteps, indeed, were heard somewhere nearby, and this was incredibly frightening.

“Please.” The boy clung to Tico, wincing at each new step that inevitably approached the main door. Rose called out to the Force, hoping that at least It would deign to help them escape. It was a tense moment of waiting for something to happen, and Rose had almost broken the wire with the effort: the lock gave way, and another tooth was lifted. The rebel turned the wire and pushed the door open again. The footsteps were very close, and she felt Hux grab her as if she were his only defense, hoping that she could intercede for him, hide him. A dim light appeared in the doorway she found. Rose pushed Armitage into it and climbed in after him. Tico had been on her feet in an instant, pulling Hux, and grabbed his arm. Tico held the boy close to protect him in case of danger. She looked around, noticing that they were in an attic somewhere. It's better than that cubbyhole. There were no stairs, or at least Tico hadn't noticed one. However, there was a window and an insane danger of falling off the roof if they tried to get out through this only exit. There was also nowhere to hide…

At that moment, the sound of a bolt at the door falling was deafeningly loud.

“Hey you, little bastard!” The terrible scrape of moving furniture sounded after the exclamation. Her heart sank and her breath caught in the throat: somebody had already come for them, she had to act immediately!

Tico tried to calm down. It was difficult for one person to quickly move the entire piled up structure that she had managed to set up near the door, so they didn't have much time. It was necessary to think sensibly and evaluate the enemy without exaggeration. 

The curses were loud and therefore extremely frightening. The growl was followed by a rumble - the man jerked the furniture back into the cubicle.  
Rose rushed toward the window. Through the dirty glass, she could see the muddy gray waves below, near the low slope where the house was located. The window looked out on the ocean or the sea!

_‘Dangerous and crazy, but so far we haven’t got another choice. Something tells me we can't stay here and wait for them to catch us. No one wants me or this boy alive, we're in trouble, especially if it was his father who came…’_

The open window was too small to get out through. The window wouldn't budge when she tried to open it: the shutters were rusty. They had no time to look for lube or other escape routes. Rose pulled off her jacket and wrapped it around her arm.

“When I tell you to jump, jump! Understand?”

She didn't hear his answer: the boy froze in horror and clutched her elbow. Rose covered him with her body so that the glass wouldn't get in his eyes. She had turned away, closed her eyes and hit the glass with all her might. The sound of shrapnel deafened her, as pain spread all over her arm.

The glass had cut her hand, and she seemed to have bruised her knuckles badly. Tico squeezed her eyes shut and pressed her hand to her chest.

“Stop there, trash!” An angry man appeared in the doorway, and the sight of him made Armitage shiver. From this reaction alone, Rose thought that the boy would choose the jump from the two evils, no matter how dangerous it was. The man quickly closed the distance, preventing Rose from making their escape.

Tico dodged the swing, but the man grabbed her by the collar and threw her to the side. It was impossible to stay on her feet: Tico tripped on the carpet, shifting it from its place, and fell.

“You, brat” the man grabbed the boy's ear “Is that how you think about your behavior?! Maybe should I teach you a lesson again?” He shoved Armitage against the wall, pulled the belt out of the belt loops of his trousers and swung threateningly. The boy twisted out of reach and ran toward Rose who was struggling to her feet and holding her head.

If she hadn't put her hand under her head, the blow would have had terrible consequences. She began to slide down again. Armitage wanted to help her up, but the man tried to hit him once more. The boy stepped back, diverting his father's attention to himself by shouting offending words. Even though he was looking to Rose for protection, he didn't want to look like a coward in her eyes. He darted to the window, then to the opposite wall, and the enraged man actually turned all his anger on him, almost forgetting about the girl. Armitage, like a small animal, ran from a predator, trying to bring it to exhaustion by using his advantage in the forms of agility and endurance.

Rose got to her feet, and her gaze fell on the shifted carpet, which revealed an inconspicuous trapdoor, which usually covered the stairs leading down! She pushed the carpet further away and hooked the handle that lifted the lid up. There was indeed a staircase set into the wall below. Rose signaled to Armitage when he turned to her, hoping that she had finally come to her senses. Tico left the lid open and pounced on the man who had been preparing to strike. 

She needed to fight for that boy!

It was not possible to overpower the enemy: Tico was quickly on the floor again, however she got up faster. Rose straightened up and lifted her chin proudly, caught between the enraged man and the child. She blocked Armitage with her own body, thus opening the way for him to escape.

“How can a human consider himself a man if he beats up a child? That's what pathetic abominations do, weaklings.” The boy tugged at her sleeve, warning her, but Rose only brushed his hand away. 

Not covered with cloth, her skin was bleeding with exposed wounds from broken glass, however, Tico didn't pay attention to it as the pain also disappeared with the adrenaline rush.

“Some rebel lecturing me? Where did you come from, whore?” He grabbed her by the collar of her shirt, intending to throw her away again, but Rose held on, gripping the tight sleeve of his uniform with a death grip. At that moment, she felt like the strongest person in the world: she was overcoming the pain, she stared stubbornly into the eyes of Brendol Hux, who was standing in front of her.

He was a real monster.

Rose pushed Armitage behind her as soon as the man opened his fingers and released the fabric. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught a movement that turned out to be the swing of a heavy metal buckle in the air, but she didn't have time to do anything. In a moment she was stunned.

The hum turned to a ringing sound, and if it hadn't been for the boy's scream, she would have thought she was back on the ship.

That it was over. 

That her short, painful journey into the nightmarish past had come to an end.

However, the boy was still quite real, as was the fact that he had thrown himself at his father. Rose found herself on the floor again, her head pounding with a vengeance. The dizziness was replaced by a rush of wild rage. Then she understood what had left those terrible bruises on the boy's face. The impact site was burning and seemed to be starting to swell. She touched her cheek softly, smearing the blood with her fingers.

“Are you going to continue teaching me how to raise children?” Brandon pushed Armitage to the side, not paying attention to the boy’s shouting and attempts at putting at least some harm to the offender. The man stood over Rose, looking at her with disdain as if she were dirt on the road.

He wanted to hit Tico with his boot, and even raised his foot, but Rose was not confused, she had expected something like that. She took advantage of the moment and hit him behind his other unraised knee. The fall was loud, and Tico was sure that if she didn't get up then, she would be beaten. She would, and then that poor boy, because no one else was going to be able to calm the enraged monster that got up on all fours.

“JUMP!”Rose dodged the metal buckle and rolled away. Old Hux turned to the window, sure that the boy had jumped out, however he didn't guess correctly. Armitage hesitated only a moment, then dived into the hole and closed the hatch. The ginger light of his hair disappeared into the darkness.

The boy ran away, and she thought mockingly that the Armitage she knew would have done the same. No one wanted useless heroics, so it was a good thing he didn't hesitate to shout that he wouldn't do it without her. Rose imagined with horror how she would have had to persuade him to run away alone if he had stayed and rushed to protect her. 

She was at peace.

The pile of thoughts faded and left only one thought, the most important.

Rose gave him hope that he would run away and save his mother. Tico expected herself to wake up at that point. For sure now, because that was her mission right?.. However, there was no awakening. Rose was left alone with the horrible nightmare of one of the most terrible people in the galaxy, the nightmare of General Armitage Hux, and that nightmare, convinced that the boy from the attic had disappeared, fixed his eyes on Rose. She stared back at him furiously. Rose then knew the truth, knew who was the reason why Armitage had become a villain.

The scum who looked at her was going to pay, if not then, later. In the meantime, she would leave a few injuries as a memento.

Before the man could swing, Tico kicked him in the face. The heavy boot smashed his nose, however the blow itself was not as strong as she had hoped, so that the opponent did not fall over backwards, only staggered. The enemy howled in pain and hatred, but he couldn't do anything because of the blood that covered his eyes. He swung again, blindly, but Rose hit him with her other foot and managed to get up, catching then as the right moment to run. The man was rubbing blood on his face, and the pain seemed to deafen him for a while. Tico ran to the trapdoor, grabbed the edge, quickly pulled it open, stood on one of the steps and lowered the lid again. Her foot slipped, and she felt herself plummeting down into the endless darkness.


	6. 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you very much, my wonderful beta!!! Thank you about you correcting, interesting stories and amazing songs!

_‘It's definitely over now…’_ Rose only had time to think before she landed on the hard wooden floor. This fall seemed long but in reality it was short term and fast. She cursed softly as the pain passed through her entire body and remained in the back of her head.

 _‘Did I make the wrong choice? Or was my travelling not over yet, and I should have also influenced some other event?’_ Tico still wondered why she was there. What could she change, and what should she have done?   
There were no answers again.

Rose dusted herself off and began to look around.

The room she found herself in was so dark that she couldn't figure out where to go next. Trusting her intuition absolutely and completely, Rose decided that she should go along the right wall: there was a slight movement of air in that direction, smelling of dust and mold. She had to go by touch. The bruised leg became a new source of pain that had been affected and was causing discomfort, however she tried not to think about it and focused on finding the boy. He was apparently already far away. She neither heard his footsteps, nor his voice. Only the curses of Brendol Hux, who was going to descend to kill the "vermin” could still be heard clearly from above. Then going through the next two rooms were devoid of chandeliers: there were only dusty old things that Rose kept bumping into. Finally, Tiсo found a room packed with furniture, with artificial light visible at the other end of the room. Rose made her way there.

 _‘Who knows, maybe the boy was captured? Had I stayed in the garret too long, hesitated too long?’_ Rose touched the injured part of her face. At that time she couldn’t stand up faster, react to blows and fight back faster than she had done. Not with her multiple injuries, not when her vision was blurry. So there was no point in blaming herself, she had done everything she could, everything in her power.

However the fighting that had begun was still going on.

Could she leave now? Could she have left it as it was? Absolutely not!

Tico stopped in front of the door catching herself thinking that she was really missing this boy. Though she was still in danger: the man in the garret had already come to his senses and went to the hatch; she pondered. The instinct of self-preservation had crept into the very recesses of her subconscious, leaving only one goal. She had promised Armitage that she was going to help him, to save him and his mother. And she was going to keep her word.

Or would she give up and run away? Maybe she should take care of herself now? After all, if this was her new life, she couldn't afford to die again.

_‘No! Even if I can't find him and we don't see each other again, I have to try to help him to the end!’_

_'Even if I have never seen…you.'_

This thought tormented her heart with aching pain.

She felt responsible for this boy who was nothing to her. Her future executioner. The man who would give the order for her execution, which might not destined to happen.

However then he was just a child to her. A child who needed support and ordinary parental love. Tico didn't have time to say much to this boy, didn't have time to warn, to forewarn…

Rose peeked around the doorway, hoping the boy was waiting for her. However, there was no one there. It was a room that opened into a corridor and ended in a door that was facing outside. She held her breath: her fingers trembling with excitement, and her face burned as if it had been burned by a flame: she had to choose right now; decide what to do. To look for the boy in this huge house or run. To stay and save him, or blindly follow the instinct of self-preservation? 

She took a cautious step forward.

“Armie-”

“Oh, there you are!” the small, happy boy's voice came from somewhere on the floor, to her side. Tico turned around. 

_‘Had he been waiting for me all this time? He didn't run away, didn't leave me. Did he wait for me to come?’_

Rose bit her cheek to keep from crying, because the damn tears were blurring her eyes. She was touched by his action, considering the fact that the boy was Armitage Hux. Armitage who was going to leave anyone and save himself, his own skin. Had she really managed to change something in this marred child, to make him believe that someone was worthy of his trust?...

The boy got out from under the chair and ran to her. Rose wanted to open her arms to pick him up, to tell him that she was so glad he'd waited for her. However, Armitage stopped at arm’s length, waving his hand at her.

"Run!I know where we can hide!” he pushed the door and it swung open.

It was cold and damp outside, and the wet wind instantly hit their face with a burning icy stream, making it difficult to breathe deeply. The cold gripped her clothes, which were damp from the fight and running, so that the girl clearly felt the chill to her bones, after leaving the warmth of the room. Armitage grabbed her by the sleeve and pulled her along, hurrying her up. He didn’t pay attention to the cold or the wind, he didn't seem to care. However Tiсo knew he was even colder than she was, but he was one of those children who would endure any weather, any ordeal, just to avoid falling under the hot hand of their father. She untied the jacket she had wrapped around her hand, dusted it off, and threw it over the boy. He flinched at the unexpected touch, glanced briefly at Rose, and then smiled faintly at the corners of his lips as he turned to face her. He was shivering in the cold, his hair disheveled, his scraped knees peeking out from under his short uniform shorts, his shirt smeared with blood from recent beatings. His features only vaguely reminded her of an adult Armitage: the child's eyes were kinder. Rose wrapped the boy in her jacket like a protective cocoon, took his hand, and they ran along the shore. Behind them, they could hear Brendol Hux’s shoutings who had finally found the fugitives.

Rose felt the pain leave her periodically, and everything finally made sense. The struggle seemed not in vain, and certainly not lost! They were going to find his mother! She had promised him that, and she would fulfill her destiny. Because that's what this second life was given to her for.

It was difficult to run on the sand and rocks: their legs were numb with fatigue and every now and then their ankle twisted, threatening to tear the ligaments of their ankle. Periodically, little Hux stumbled and fell, so Rose had to pick him up and practically drag him along. However, it wasn't too difficult… It was much more difficult to rise by herself, when it seemed that the last of her strength was draining away with each new fall of her own.

The enemy shelled mainly the residential part of the coast, the coastline and the rocky shore were only occasionally attacked. With the sound of gunfire following them everywhere, Rose could no longer distinguish the voice of Armitage’s dad: it was all one hum, threatening imminent death. They stayed in plain sight for a long time, although they tried to run along the rocky wall so as to attract less attention from those who were in the air and continued to attack.

After running around almost half of the shore surrounding the house, Rose noticed huge rocks in the distance. Between the massive boulders was an opening of a small cave. Tico let the boy in, then began to move one of the heavy stones herself. Brendol Hux was probably still looking for them on the beach, so they needed to hide and wait out. She hoped the wind and rain would make their tracks disappear from the sand. They were already exhausted from the chase and the bone-chilling cold. The girl gathered her last strength, exerted every effort to carry out her plan, and soon she and Armitage were sitting on the sand in the cave, holding their breath and listening. Shots were still being fired in the sky, making the boy wince and pull Rose's jacket covering his head. Tico sat at the mouth of the cave, holding one of the stones ready in her hand: if necessary, she was going to smash the pursuer's skull, but she was not going to allow him to do any harm to the boy. Time passed slowly, and Rose thought that the screams of menace would never cease, and one of the shots would surely hit the rocks. However, they were lucky. Brendol retreated and left the shore as soon as the shells began to plow the water surface very close. Rose was grateful that the rocky shore gave them the opportunity to escape from two evils at once. They only needed to wait out the attack, which would definitely not last forever.

It was already dark. Rose was still listening intently to the sounds outside, while Armitage lay down on the sand beside her, his head rested on her knee. She understood, though not right away, that he had fallen asleep. In such a dangerous and exciting environment, it was difficult to allow themselves to relax, it was impossible… Tico carefully pulled her jacket over his shoulders, thinking wistfully that the situation they were in now was probably ridiculously calm compared to what he'd been through before. She lifted him gently into her arms, holding him close to her to keep him warm. Most likely, he fell asleep not so much because of fatigue, but from the rapidly engulfing cold. She was sure that he hadn't eaten anything during the day, so where could his body get the necessary energy to keep warm?... Rose stroked his head gently, hoping she hadn't disturbed his sleep.

***

The unfamiliar song reached Rose's ears, and she opened her eyes with difficulty. A woman's voice was humming a soft, simple melody that sounded like a lullaby. Tico even thought it was the voice of a siren that had come out of the water to kill them.The girl wanted to wake Armitage, however he had already gotten up and was standing at the crevices between the rocks, looking out. He held on to a large boulder in front of him, listening to the words of the song.

_'Maybe the voice was familiar to him?'_

"Do you know her?" Tico whispered slowly moving towards the cave entrance. Her legs were numb from sitting in one place for so long, and the importunate tiredness wouldn't let go. She wanted to stay here, let herself drift off, and let herself rest for a while. She still felt incredibly tired from the pain and cold that tormented her. Her teeth were chattering.

The boy didn't say anything, and probably didn't even hear her question. He took a cautious step forward. Tico stood beside him, ready to protect him at any moment, in case that female voice turned out to be just a distraction. She glanced at Armitage, hoping that he would give her some sign before he thoughtlessly stepped forward. However, the boy stared at the woman who continued to hum the song, and silently cried. Rose didn't dare touch his shoulder, she didn't have the words to say anything to him, just walked out of the cave with him. The woman stood with her back to them, her hair dull in the gloomy light of the luminary hidden behind the clouds, her tiny figure bent over the numerous rags that she was rinsing in a bucket of water. Tico looked around for danger, but there was no sign of Brendol Hux or any other men or women. It didn't make her feel any better, but at least she didn't notice the open threat, so she could turn her attention to the woman. She continued to hum as if nothing had happened.

"Maybe I, maybe you

Are just dreaming sometimes

But the world would be cold —" *

"— Without dreamers like you" the soft, boyish voice came with her. 

Rose looked at Armitage in surprise, then back at the stranger, who immediately broke off and turned to face them. Tico tensed, bracing herself for the woman's scream, for the possibility that she would become a new threat, or that someone would detect them by her reaction. However she didn't make a sound. 

She had beautiful, refined features and light eyes. The grown-up Armitage looked so much like her…

The woman didn't say anything, just stared at the boy as if she was afraid to blink and lose the image of him that appeared before her. Continuously and excitedly. Her lips were trembling, and her hands dropped to her sides, no longer busy rinsing the rags. They stood in tense silence, looking at each other, apparently not daring to speak. Two unfortunate people who, by the will of fate, fell into the terrible house of Hux: Armitage and his mother.

"Armie." The woman fell to her knees, opening her tentative arms, and the boy immediately closed the distance between them, rushing to her.

"Mum —" his voice broke, and Rose could feel how much pain there was in that simple word. She was still horrified by how cruel his father had been, how heartless, to turn this kind, genuinely loving his mother boy into a terrible general of the First Order. How much hardship did this child have to go through…Then she was witnessing a meeting between Armitage Hux and his mother, a meeting with the only person who was capable of causing him to have bright, light feelings… Tico ran a hand down her cheek, rubbing away the tears.

The boy buried his face in the woman's shoulder as she held him gently, comforting him. 

"My poor little boy" she kissed the top of his head and wrapped him up tighter in Rose's jacket which was still around him. "My dear boy, my little baby" came to the ears of Tico.

The girl looked at them in silence, not believing that she had succeeded. She had done it, she had fulfilled her promise, she had fulfilled Armitage's one dying wish. She braced herself for waking up in an instant. Everything swam before her eyes.

"Mum, this is Rose! She told me she would save us!" Tico couldn't believe her ears. She wiped the tears from her eyes again, and realized that they had made the image blurry.

"Who is she?" The woman still didn't let the boy out of her arms and only lifted her head to look at Rose.

"Rose. Rose Tico" the girl came closer and held out her hand. The dried blood on her skin reminded her of recent events. About the struggle for life that all three of them continued. 

“He did it to both of you, didn't he?” the woman looked first at Rose, then turned the boy's face to her so that she could finally get a close look at him. The woman was instantly transformed, becoming stern and rigid.

"Believe me, he paid for it with a broken nose at least" Rose managed to stifle the woman's rising anger for her unavenged child. The woman gently kissed the boy on the cheek and lifted him into her arms.

“I have some healing ointments, let's go. We can't stay here” she pointed to the Hux family home “He'll be here soon, and the laundry can be done later”.

***

Rose sat behind a boulder, waiting for a response to the signal that had been sent. Armitage stood a little to one side on the lookout, so that he could warn Tico in case of danger. The girl stared up at the sky, clutching the stolen walkie-talkie, and the recent memories swirled in her mind.

_The small, dark room in which the woman lived was even smaller than the small room they had escaped from, but there was a bed, a table, and a lot of old clothes. Rose was talking quietly to the ginger-haired woman whose name she never learned, while Armitage was eating a small bun. The woman periodically threw him short glances of affection, silently rejoicing that her child would finally be fed. Tico was asking how she could leave the Hux house grounds undetected, how she could get to the people, to the workers, to someone who could help contact the rebels. The only possible option was the shore: the part of it where the wrecked abandoned fishing boats were located. It was there that a distress signal could be transmitted, a request for help could be made, and a time and place could be agreed upon._

_“Now I understand why he wouldn't let you see your son" Rose said, looking at the woman sympathetically "He thought you might be able to escape…”_

_“Oh he had foreseen that too” she grinned, just like the grown-up Armitage. “I'm wearing a wristband that tracks my location. Like any servant, I have no way of escaping unnoticed. However, now that we have hope of salvation, we can risk everything. I have nothing to lose, but my son… He deserves better, a better life, not the one I had”._

_Rose nodded curtly. No one deserves to be treated like this, much less a child. Tico turned the piece of paper toward her, studying the outline of the beach once more, needing to memorize every detail, along with several possible escape routes. Of course, they didn't have many opportunities, and for the most part, they didn't have much to rely on. Their signal could be intercepted, it could not reach the recipient, and in case of poor communication, which was not new in such disgusting weather. They could be killed along the way, things could get out of hand at any moment._

_It was necessary to act quickly._

_"Tonight, I think it should work," Tico frowned and tapped the table. — In any case, I'll cover you and lead you to the ship if they arrive. For what it's worth..._

“Over, over, this is " Millicent"” A woman's voice came over the speaker, and Rose was startled, almost dropping the receiver.

“Arkanis. Rose Tico, mechanic…” - ‘of the Resistance’ - “ Please, help! It is necessary to remove the child from the war zone and -”

“What is the payment? “ Tico gasped in outrage.

‘Payment?! They must help as the Resistance helps those who need it!’

“Over! What's the payment, Mechanic Rose?” the voice that interrupted her was loud enough that Armitage turned around. Tico caught his eye: and without a word, it was clear that his hope had been shattered by the stern indifference of their only rescuers. He knew that she had nothing to offer them, and he knew perfectly well that he had nothing, just like his mother. Nothing expensive enough to save their miserable lives.

Only the naive Rose, as always, thought that people would treat others the same way as she did. Naive girl.

“Over! We can't talk to you. Either name the price, or we accept another call”

An icy sweat broke out on her, causing Tico to run her hand excitedly down her neck, her fingers brushing the twisted cord.

Her heart skipped a beat at the memory: the hard grip of the stormtroopers, the sound of metal hitting the perfectly polished floor, the black army boot, and the appraising look.

“A Hosnian alloy amulet!" Rose blurted out, snatching the rope with the other half of the amulet hanging from it from under the thin fabric “Handmade…”

There was silence on the other end, either their call had already been dropped, or the dispatcher was considering whether to give them a chance. Tico could feel her heart pounding in her chest. Rose looked at Armitage, at the transformation in his face when he heard her answer. There was life in his eyes again.

"One person, no more. Wait.”

***

There were a lot of people on the beach, as if someone had actually intercepted the signal, and now everyone was waiting for the ship to arrive. Rose and Armitage were barely out of sight before Brendol reached their new hiding place. Hux's mother was supposed to meet them as soon as she had cleared up any suspicion and managed to cover up the loss of the receiver: a dangerous mission, risky and reckless, however they had no other choice. Tico observed Armitage, who kept looking around for his mother, and she felt uneasy. With the arrival of night, the military operations did not stop, but it did not increase. The danger of being blown up did not disappear, but it was quite difficult to shoot them from their new shelter. The others were not so lucky: now and then from different sides there were heart-rending screams of those who did not have time to run to some kind of shelter and were injured. It was pointless to rush to help, because they had neither the opportunity nor the means to provide it. Besides, if Rose were to risk dragging one of them to their hideout, there was no guarantee that she wouldn't be killed on the spot.

As time went on, Tico felt more and more that nothing would come of it. Armitage's mother was running late - something had obviously gone wrong.

"If she doesn't show up in the next couple of minutes, we are going to have to run without her, Armie" Rose said softly and cautiously touched the boy's shoulder. He flinched and turned to her.

"Please, just a little more. She'll be here soon…" 

_'Or she won't come at all.'_

Tico felt her heart clench as a sharp pain shot through it. 

_'What if she's dead? What if this woman is lying in some cellar, beaten, maimed, unconscious?... No one knows how her conversation with Brendol Hux ended, because this bastard obviously guessed everything and gave her a thorough interrogation.'_

"We can't leave without her, we just found her!" the boy was almost crying "Please, just a little more…" 

"They can fly away and not take anyone. Have you seen how many people want to leave the planet?" 

"Just a little more, please" he said, squeezing her sleeve, looking pleadingly into her face.

Rose was crying out to the Force to show her the right way.

There was only one person she could save anyway, and his mother had made it clear that she only wanted her son to be saved. However, it is possible to wait until no new ship was seen.

"All right, when that star disappears behind the clouds, we'll leave. We can't wait any longer." 

The wait was agonizingly long: there was the sound of a ship approaching, but no one came to their shelter, and something told Tico that no one would come. 

_'He killed her, he killed this woman!'_

"We can't wait, you hear?! The ship, it's here, Armitage, we have to run!" she took the boy in her arms "It's gonna be okay. She'll catch up with us, she'll make it. The main thing is to get to the ship!" 

"No, please, we have to wait for her! I'm not going without her!" he tried to pull away, but Rose held him tighter. "Let go, I'll find her! Mum!"

" Hush! Don't shout, they'll hear us!" she hugged him tighter, covering his mouth with her hand "Quiet! If I said she'd find us, then so be it!" 

_'But how would she find us if she was already dead…'_

Armitage managed to bite the girl's finger, so that she immediately withdrew her hand, thus giving the boy the opportunity to speak again.

"You just want to escape!”

Rose shuddered at the anger and condemnation with which he shouted it in her face.

_'I want to escape? I'm the last person who needed this damn rescue!'_

Tico ignored his contempt and walked briskly toward the ship. They were the closest to the supposed landing site, which should have given them a chance to get there first.

Armitage continued to struggle, whimpering and insulting her for not wanting to wait a little longer, but Rose didn't care. She took shelter behind a boulder, peering at the ship that had landed. The hatch began to open gradually, and Tico tried to see the first people who had come ashore. To her utter horror, Brendol Hux was there, accompanied by a strange woman and a soldier who held Armitage's mother like a prisoner with her hands twisted behind her back. She had indeed been beaten, but she was still alive, since she was still standing on her own two feet. The boy twisted around to see why Rose froze and loosened her grip.

"Mum!" he lunged forward, and Tico barely stopped him from doing something rash. Although her first thought was to run out and help the woman escape, she was well aware that without a weapon, her attempt would be futile.

"Hush, we need to be more careful" Rose tried to get closer, hiding behind the boulders, still holding Armitage in her arms so that he wouldn't run away and do something stupid. 

_'We need to wait for the rescue ship!'_

"He hit her again just now! Don't you see, I have to help her!" The boy squirmed again, trying to free himself.

"You can't do anything alone! One order from him and she'd be shot. He needs to lure you out, don't you understand?!" Rose looked into Armitage's eyes, but he turned away, trying to find his mother.

"If it saves her, if he stops hitting her, I'm ready" he twitched again in an attempt to free himself. "I'm not afraid of him! I have to save my mum!" 

A second spaceship hummed in the sky, and Rose looked up hopefully. If this was their savior, they will start to fire at the enemy ship, and they will save his mother, him and her at the same time. However, the new ship was in no hurry to fire at the enemy. It landed a little further away, removing its invisibility disguise and thus attracting the attention of Brandol Hux and the unknown woman.

_‘If the hatch opens now, we need to get to the ship in time! This time, it's definitely a rescue!’_

Rose rushed to the new ship, completely forgetting that they were now open to fire, that now both Brandol and the rest of his allies had seen them. Because the fleeing intruders are more interesting than the ship.

“Ah, there you are!” The man yelled, and Tico finally realized how thoughtless her own actions had been. “If you run away, you weakling, I'm going to kill her! You can be sure she is going to die like a dog! Like a pitiful brat” Brandol Hux continued to yell, fueling his son's anger. Rose stopped as the boy began to struggle out of her grip again. She'd missed the moment when he'd managed to land on the ground. Tico stopped, watching as Armitage watched his father. Brendol pushed the battered woman to the sand, pointing his blaster at her.

They were close enough to both ships, they just needed to make a choice. All Rose had to do was yank the boy and run with him to the opening hatch, just as she had promised. Armitage, however, had other thoughts on the matter: he had rushed to his mother, so Tico had to follow him. She couldn't save them both, she couldn't take the boy and his mother away. One person, but who?!

The woman who had accompanied Brendol boarded the ship, while the soldier approached Tico, taking aim at Armitage.

“The Grand Admiral is doing a favor by saving this boy. So I would advise you not to interfere" the soldier looked at Rose expectantly, while Armitage tried to fight off his father, who grabbed his arm. Tico saw the boy's horror as he looked at his mother lying on the ground, and she knew that exactly this human, this woman she needed to save. 

_'Only in this way will I be able to leave something bright in the life of Armitage Hux, which in the future will help him find his real self... more human and forgiving'._

Tico bent down to the woman, lifting her off the ground. Armitage stopped struggling, startled by what he saw: he watched in fascination as Rose and his mother headed for the ship that promised them salvation. The hatch on that ship began to open, so soon Tico saw the people on board holding out their hands to her.

 _'It's not that simple'_ thought Rose _'All of this can't be easy'_ the girl took the amulet from around her neck and squeezed it in her fist. The difficulty was not in parting with the most precious thing, the only memory left of everything that was most dear to her. The difficulty was not that only one person could be saved. No…

The enemy ship was already taking off, and all that remained was to close the hatch to the end. Brendol caught the boy with one hand, blocking the escape route, and with the other hand aimed at the consort lying at the hatch of the other ship.

"Please save her" Rose whispered, handing the woman to her allies and giving over her amulet.

Tico quickly glanced back. The raised blaster was the only thing she saw from the closing hatch before she became the target of the shot: she managed to push Armitage's mother aside, but failed to take cover herself.

The shrill, boyish cry was drowned out by the hum of the spaceships, but for Tico, it was the only sound she heard.

"Rose!" 

The girl felt the beam of fire burn through her lungs, grazing her pounding heart, knocking the soft last breath out of her. The deafening pain knocked her down in an instant, and Tico collapsed on the sand. She didn't hear anything else. There was darkness before her eyes.

"You look up to the sky  
With all those questions in mind  
All you need is to hear  
The voice of your heart..."*

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * "Maybe I, Maybe you" Scorpions


End file.
